The Impact of Academic Procrastination on Academic Burnout and Sleep Quality: The Mediating Role of Guilt

Abstract

Academic procrastination - voluntary postponement of academic work despite being aware of resulting adverse consequences - is a common occurrence among university students and it is associated with burnout and impaired sleep. Guided by the Self-Regulation theory, the current research investigated whether guilt mediates procrastination as people related to two forms of outcomes (i.e., academic burnout and sleep quality). Using a cross-sectional design, 400 undergraduate and graduate (55% females, average age (21-23 years) of mostly universities of the public and private sector) students took part in validated tests: PASS (procrastination), SSGS-guilt, MBI-SS (burnout), PSQI (sleep quality). Reliability was strong (α = 0.84–0.92). Procrastination was also positively related to guilt (r=.56) and burnout (r=.49) and negatively related to sleep quality (r= -.41; all p < -.001). Guilt was found to be related to burnout (r = .52), and sleep quality (r = -.46) in a negative relationship. Likewise, procrastination was also significantly related to guilt (Hayes' PROCESS, 5,000 bootstraps), b=.56. For burnout, both procrastination (β =.22), and guilt (β =.52) were significant predictors (R2=.47) with guilt mediating the relationship (in part; 57% of total effect). For the quality of sleep, an effect of procrastination (β = -.14) and feelings of guilt (β = -.46) on poorer sleep (R2 = .33) was found, which was partly mediated (approximately, 63%).

Keywords: Academic procrastination; Guilt; Academic burnout; Sleep quality; Self-Regulation Theory; Mediation; University students; Emotional regulation